Jervey Gymnasium - 1,344	1	2	3	4	T
Virginia Tech	16	25	18	25	1
Clemson	25	20	25	27	3
Box Score: View

CLEMSON, S.C. – The Virginia Tech volleyball squad could not overcome a .338 hitting percentage by Clemson, as the Hokies fell to the Tigers, 3-1 (16-25, 25-20, 18-25, 25-27), in Jervey Gym on Friday night.

Tech (18-11, 8-10 ACC) hit .241 in the match, but could only block 2.5 attacks. The Tigers (22-8, 12-6 ACC) struck at a .338 clip and stuffed nine Hokie attacks.

After a competitive early battle, Clemson opened up some breathing room, going on a 4-0 run to gain an 11-6 advantage in the opening frame. The Hokies rallied to cut the lead to three, but another Tiger spurt, this time a 5-1 run, crushed Tech’s momentum at 16-9. The Hokies would get no closer as the Tigers carried the lead to victory in set one, 25-16.

Set two went back and forth between the two squads, and featured several key runs. The Hokies grabbed a 13-10 advantage, but a 5-0 Clemson spurt gave the Tigers a two point advantage. Down 16-14, Tech reeled off four straight points to swing the lead back in its favor, 18-16, and maintained the advantage the rest of the way to win set two, 25-20.

A 3-0 burst midway through the third period pushed Clemson to an 11-7 cushion. The Tigers would keep the four-point lead and extended it the rest of the way. A block by Clemson’s Alexa Rand sealed the set for the Tigers, 25-18.

The fourth set featured 14 ties in an extremely close frame. As Clemson embarked on a 4-0 streak to go up 16-12, it looked like the Tigers would run away with the set, but Tech answered with a 4-0 run of their own to even the period back up. Tied at 18, the Tigers won the next three points, but again Tech battled back. The Hokies fought off three match points and took the lead with four points in a row at 25-24. The Tigers came back though, and won the next three points to steal the fourth period, 27-25, and win the match, 3-1.

Junior Felicia Willoughby and freshman Cara Baarendse paced the squad with 13 kills each, while sophomore Justine Record added 11 kills. Sophomore Erin Leaser dished out 46 assists, and senior Jill Gergen recorded 14 digs.

The Hokies take on Georgia Tech in their final road contest this season tomorrow at O’Keefe Gymnasium in Atlanta, Ga., tomorrow at 7 p.m. Results will be available at hokiesports.com.